Gay-porn producer finds safe way to remove condoms from films

Many porn industry leaders have been fighting Los Angeles’ condom mandate since it was passed in 2012. The exception, however, has been gay porn studios, which traditionally include condom use as a standard production practice.

But one gay porn studio previously known for strict condom use appears to be changing the game. Falcon Studios has announced plans to digitally remove condoms from one of its upcoming features.

Marketed as a safe-sex movie “that mostly appears to be a bareback release,” California Dreamin’ (not to be confused with the mid-1990s teen NBC series California Dreams) is a retro homage to the “classic, pre-condom Falcon poolside movies from the 70s and 80s,” according to a press release for the film on the studio’s website (NSFW).

“With this movie I really wanted to capture the essence of that time, when life seemed more carefree and spontaneous,” California Dreamin’ director Tony DiMarco said. “In keeping with this concept, I felt that condoms need to be addressed. I wanted to give the impression of a pre-condom movie, but use condoms as we do in every scene we film.”

Of course, framing the digital removal of condoms as an artistic decision rather than a financial one, DiMarco and Falcon Studios sidestep the question of the profitability of the move.

It’s no secret that in both gay porn and straight porn, bareback films make more money than those that require performers to wear condoms. That’s why the straight porn industry is resisting the condom mandate so aggressively, and why gay porn studios are increasingly shooting bareback scenes, marketing them as “grittier” and more naturalistic than films that use condoms.

By championing safe sex practices and then digitally removing evidence of said practices in post-production, Falcon Studios appears to want to have its cake and eat it too: they want to represent themselves as condom advocates, while simultaneously financially profiting off the fantasy of condom-less sex.

It could be seen as a shrewd move—or a cynical one—but it’s unclear whether it’ll actually be profitable. As the Verge notes, Falcon Studios doesn’t make mention of how much digital condom removal actually costs. Whatever the cost, however, one can reasonably assume it’s an investment most financially beleaguered porn companies will be unwilling—or, more likely, unable — to make.